Monday, September 25th, 2006

The Sun Always Shines On TV

I used to watch a lot of TV as a kid. Like A LOT. Naturally, as I got older there was less time for boob-tubing and the television landscape is quite different now with the advent of TV-on-DVD and cable shows that run on their own schedules, but I still get a bit of a tingle when September comes and with it, the new (network) television season. I’m of the opinion that despite the amount of utter dreck on the air, that we’re still in the middle of something of a television renaissance right now. I can’t remember the last time (if ever) there were so many shows on that I’ve heard good things about or would like to try and catch if only I had an infinite amount of time at my disposal. But as it is, I’ve had to be very picky and choosy about what I watch because otherwise, I’ll watch everything. It’s depressingly easy to hook me on a show – I watched 90210 for three or four season in university even though I found it wretched. I just couldn’t stop (and it was great for procrastinating).

Anyway, with the departure of The West Wing, it looked as though there were going to be some pretty big openings in the time I was willing to allot to TV programming. 24 doesn’t start till January and man cannot live on Veronica Mars alone (well, I probably could but that’s another topic…). But thank goodness for Aaron Sorkin and his new show Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip. Premiereing last week, it looks like it will more than fill that White House-shaped hole in my life. It has much of the same creative team, some of the same cast and even the same credits font as The West Wing and based on just the first episode, it looks to have the same creative spark that made Sorkin’s last show so beloved.

Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford are a team of comedy writers who are recruited to take over an SNL-type comedy show after the former producer has an on-air meltdown. Naturally, they have a history with the show, its cast and the network and there is much promise in the relationships and politics that ensue. I’ve always thought Perry was capable of much more than Friends allowed, so it’s great to see him get a role that will (hopefully) let him realize that potential. Whitford has more than proven he’s a great match for Sorkin’s writing and I was rather surprised at how well Amanda Peet did as the new network president. The reviews so far have been pretty positive so hopefully it can find a large enough audience to convince NBC it’s worth the incredibly high production costs. But while the show is being lauded, the mock-blog they set up to promote it isn’t so lucky. Note that Defaker is down right now – temporarily or for good?

A show I’ve been browbeaten into watching lately – and I’m glad for it – is the new Battlestar Galactica. Pretty much everyone I knew with any sort of geek to them was telling me how great the new show was, so I gave in and watched the miniseries. Then the first season. Then the second season. And yeah, I will happily admit it’s pretty damn good. I wouldn’t call it groundbreaking – it leans more than a little on ideas from Starship Troopers and V – but it is almost perfectly executed and that can count for a lot more than originality. Like pretty much everyone else, I’m eager as hell to see how season three plays out starting in two weeks, though The Resistance web episodes have been bitter, yawning disappointments. Those are thoroughly inessential but I’m not holding it against anyone. CHUD.com has a conversation with show creator Ron Moore about the show’s politics and what to expect from the next season.

As for Veronica Mars, season three of that premieres on October 3 and for the first time, it will be simulcast in Canada on the otherwise abhorrent Sun-TV network. Hooray. The Chicago Tribune talks to creator Rob Thomas about season three, the pressures of being a show on the bubble on a new network… and Richard Grieco.

I do still have a vacancy for a decent, half-hour sitcom to fill in for Arrested Development. I’ve started watching The Office but still have season two to catch up on. Anything new this season look promising? The AV Club tries to help out, and I do appreciate that.

And this TV post gives me the opportunity to clear out some MP3s I’ve been sitting on for a while but never found the right time to post – indie rock TV theme song covers! Anyone got any more worth hearing? And I’m ignoring tracks from those Saturday morning cartoon theme tributes a while back, everyone’s heard those.

I started catching up on season 1 of How I Met Your Mother on the weekend, and I ended up watching 9 episodes yesterday. It’s a cute little quirky show. My Name Is Earl is a FANTASTIC show. The Class, created by David Crane of Friends fame, looks like it could be *ok*, but I just can’t see how they can keep it up for a full season, let alone many seasons. Six Degrees is a fantastic little drama that started up last week too, and it looks to be INCREDIBLY good. Is that too many shows? :)

I thought your title for this post was in reference to the show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, which apparently was titled It’s Always Sunny on TV when the concept was in development. It’s a brilliant half-hour sitcom, which I think shares sensibilities with Curb Your Enthusiasm and Arrested Development.

Unfortunately it’s a cable sitcom with short seasons — the second just finished, with 10 episodes.

Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip has gotten off to a good start, and features all the trademarks of an Aaron Sorkin show: walking-and-talking, so much dialogue even those Gilmore girls would be left out of breath, musical Gilbert-and-Sullivan style numbers, a strong undercurrent of self-righteousness, and an unresolved relationship that will nag at the show until those characters are finally brought together…Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford are fantastic Sorkin actors and definitely up to the task, and the show has a great cast overall, but I’m no fan of Sarah Paulson’s character (or her stilted delivery of Sorkin’s lines), nor am I sure that Amanda Peet was the right choice to play a network executive. This being Sorkin, I’m definitely going to keep watching…

Season 3 of the Office really hit the ground running last week. I haven’t laughed that much at a half hour of TV in quite a while. It opened up some new storylines, while keeping us teased on the old ones. The show is still getting better, so you should hurry up and finish that season 2 and get caught up.

Anyone know who’s showing My Name Is Earl and The Office in Canada? I tuned into Global last week after anxiously awaiting to watch the premieres and there was no trace of either show! I don’t have cable – does this mean I’m going to have to download/wait for the dvd now?

Other shows I"m impressed with this season are Smith and to an extent Studio 60…I do miss Sports Night and just wish they would bring it back. Bradley Whitford is infinitely annoying but what can you do.

You won’t be sorry watching the Office. I recently started watching because my sister bought seasons 1 and 2, and while it isn’t as spontaneous as the british original, it is absolutely one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen on tv, period. Better late than never, I guess. This week’s season premiere had me on the floor.

There’s so many interesting TV shows it seems, but the only ones I seem to catch with any sort of regularity are "Cold Case" on Sunday nights, and "Airline" and "Criss Angel" on A& E. And to fill the X-files void, although not quite as intelligent, "Supernatural" is good fun.

I’m not surprised that people aren’t going to like Sarah Paulson’s character. First, the character is based on Sorkin’s ex-gf, Kristin Chenowith, so no big shock how Sorkin will deal with her. Second, she looks to be Sorkin’s designated straw-man for the show, i.e., the conservative character set up to be refuted by the more liberal characters over time.

Actually, the reason I prefer SportsNight to Sorkin’s other shows is that he didn’t bother with trying to prtend he was balanincing with a conservative point of view. Rather, it was a bunch of generally liberal folks occasionally having thoughtful disagreements among themselves on issues — and was much less phony for it.

I don’t know whether Amanda Peet is the right choice for an exec either. OTOH, she is Amanda Peet. Sorkin could have her just stand around and I would consider watching it. And I do think it’s funny that she and Paulson were both on the short-lived "Jack & Jill" show on the WB with Jamie Pressly — who is great on MyName Is Earl.

I haven’t listened to it yet, but I have a possible correction: The band Nerf Herder does the regular theme to BtVS. If the Breeders happened to cover it, good for them, but I suspect it’s mislabeled. (Yeah, I am one of those losers who meticulously labels his MP3s. Sorry.)

Realy enjoyed reading yer post. I also can’t wait for the next Studio 60 episode.

House, House, House, House……. House. I sit and take notes of the way he treats people and staff and still is loved/revered. Great stuff. If you ever wanted to hear what the doctor was really thining when you come in with something stuck in a zipper.

Since everyone mentioned It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia already I’ll give you a few others. If you like the Office I would recommend both Extras and The Thick of It. Extras is Gervais’ new series (season 2 just started featuring the much blogged about Bowie cameo). The Thick of It is a year old and only 6 episodes have been made so far but a new season is supposed to be airing soon. From its wikipedia page:

"The action centres on the fictitious Department of Social Affairs. Hugh Abbot (Langham) is a minister heading the department, who is continually trying to do his job, or rather look like he is doing his job, while under the watchful eye of Malcolm Tucker (Capaldi), Number 10’s highly aggressive and domineering "enforcer".
"

Of course since neither show airs in Canada at the moment you’re stuck with downloads but they’re well worth it.

I’ve found myself enjoying the comedy How I Met Your Mother on Mondays. The acting and writing are pretty good. They seem to run contrary to standard sitcom practices. Neil Patrick Harris (yes, Doogie) kills as the bachelor of the group and the music is pretty good too. They tend to end most episodes on a song, and they’ve ranged from My Morning Jacket to Roxy Music. The 88 had a funny cameo as a prom band last year.

And the drama Heroes is looking great too. Bit of a Rising Stars (comic book) premise with ordinary people starting to discover extraordinary powers. The pilot impressed me enough to get me looking forward to the next episodes. Bonus is that both shows are on Mondays, and there aren’t too many gigs on those nights.